


Sanctuary

by PepiMax



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-23
Updated: 2018-03-23
Packaged: 2019-04-06 17:39:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14062002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PepiMax/pseuds/PepiMax
Summary: Abigail, Sebastian, and Sam go monster hunting on an abandoned plot of farmland that’s been reclaimed by the surrounding wilderness!  What they find isn’t quite what they expected.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I started playing Stardew Valley again, and got the idea to write a little something for the story I’ve got going on in my head for my current game save. I was originally just going to write this to share with a few friends, but decided I may as well post it here in case anyone else might enjoy it. This is just the first chapter, but I’m hoping to write more as it comes to me. Sorry if it's a bit dorky, and I make a mistake or two here or there. I'm not the best of writers, but it's a fun occasional hobby for me. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy!

After filling up his basket to the brim with fresh salmonberries, Linus licked the red juices that stained his fingers from the long harvest that brought him all the way into the wilderness in search of the plentiful bushes. Typically, he never wandered this far into the overgrown, often dangerous forest that sprung up around the long abandoned farmland here, but up until now, it was difficult to find edible foodstuff to forage this spring. The sudden abundance of berries was almost like a gift from the gods, and it was hard to reject such a relief from his hunger.

Besides, the monsters that would roam this area allegedly didn’t appear until nighttime, and right now, the sun was just barely setting. The wild man would have plenty of time to perhaps take a few moments to snack directly from the bushes prior to bringing his haul back to his tent. He only prayed that it was still standing when he returned, since by then it would surely be dark and make re-constructing it difficult. Maybe Robin would be kind enough to help if that were the case, he thought with a sense of guilt and doubt.

He was distracted from his depressing thoughts when a rustle came from one of the bushes that stood only a few feet away from the one he was currently eating from. His heart sank with fear and his calloused hands trembled, squishing the fistful of berries in one of his clenched hands without realizing it.

Had he stayed out too late? Were the monsters here? N-No, maybe… Maybe it was just a rabbit. That was a pleasant thought. Linus hadn’t had rabbit meat in a long time… His mouth watered at the idea, and his legs dragged him over to the bush of interest.

“H-Hello..?” he called out cautiously, eyes darting around to get a quick glance at his surroundings. He stuffed the fistful of berries, now little more than skins with no juice left inside, into his mouth to free up a hand while the other held tightly to the handle of his basket. After wiping his hand on his caveman-esque outfit, he reached out to push aside some of the bush’s bright green foliage to take a closer look.

A pale, mechanical blue hand appeared from the new gap between the branches, and grabbed the haggard old man by the wrist. Not painfully tight, but enough to startle him.

Linus let out a loud gasp, and the hair on the back of his neck stood up straight. Eventually, the gasp became a horrified scream. He wrenched his wrist free of the creature’s grasp, and turned the other way to start running as fast as he possibly could, not caring about the sharp pains he experienced from thoughtlessly stomping on twigs and small rocks along the way. All he could think about was getting away. It didn’t even matter to him at the time that many of the berries he worked so hard to pick were spilling out of the top of his packed basket behind him. None of it would matter, anyway, if he didn’t survive.

When Linus had finally gotten clear of the wilderness, his pace slowed to a more comfortable one. As comfortable as briskly jogging could be with cuts all over his feet now, anyway. He kept looking over his shoulder at the darkness that filled the gaps between all of the trees and other untamed plant life, wondering if that monster was still following him.

“I’ll never go back there again,” he promised himself, breathing heavily from exhaustion. “No matter HOW tempting the pickings are next time!”

* * *

Meanwhile back in the wilderness, the creature slowly, but surely, pulled itself out from the bush in which it had apparently become stuck. The being was very human in shape, but clearly a robot of some sort. Its short hair was navy blue, while the rest of its metallic body was more of a baby blue. The robot’s wide eyes shone a pure white color, and overall the being’s face had very doll-like facial features. It stood at an average height for an adult male, and was clothed in white jeans, ankle high dark blue boots, and a light blue sweater that had a large white J on the front.

The attire it wore looked very tattered, and the sweater was pierced with a few branches that still bore leaves on them. Some of the twigs were entangled in its artificial hair as well. In fact, the robot itself seemed fairly damaged. Loose wires jutted out from the seams in its neck and fingers, and occasionally gave off faint sparks. The bright white eyes flickered, and often became dim for long periods of time like a flashlight with low battery power. The robot wasn’t in great shape and looked badly in need of recharging, but otherwise was still quite functional. Even if it was only capable of limping aimlessly through the wilderness at a snail’s pace.

* * *

“Well you guys can be scared-y cats if you want, but I’m going to check the haunted farmland myself,” Abigail insisted with a huff, brushing her long purple hair to the side as she equipped herself with the leather sheath for her large sword that would drape across her back. She was so glad that her mother hadn’t accidentally found the over-sized weapon under her bed the last time she did a surprise cleaning of her room last time she was out with the two friends that were now gathered with her in her room.

“Aw c’mon, Abbie—I thought you invited us over to play video games tonight. My mom would kill me if she heard about me running off to fight monsters in the woods. Heck, she might not ever let me leave the house again!” Sam protested after taking a quick sip from his cold can of Joja Cola. “I can’t host music gigs from my  _bedroom_...” He frowned just at the thought of how embarrassing that would be. He could just imagine his mom being one of the few audience members, and trying way too hard to cheer him on just to make him feel better.

Sebastian shrugged his shoulders and suggested, “I mean, I guess just a quick look at what’s really there wouldn’t hurt… We could probably leave the video game music on here in Abigail’s room, sneak out for just a few minutes, and no one would even realize that we were gone in the first place. There’s probably nothing out there but some small animals, anyway. After all, it was Linus that claimed he saw a monster. No offense to the guy, but he IS kind of eccentric and pretty old.”

Abigail beamed wide when at least Sebastian was warming up to her idea. “Heck yeah! Then let’s do this thing!” she responded excitedly, raising her fist into the air triumphantly. “And if we actually DO bag a monster, imagine what everyone would say!? We’d be the youngest monster hunters the Valley has seen in years! That’s just as cool as being musical stars, right Sam? And we’d be even cooler if we were stars AND monster hunters! It could be like our gimmick or something!”

Sam couldn’t help but grin at Abigail’s encouragement. “That  _would_ be really awesome,” he admitted, letting the idea get to his head pretty quickly. Monster hunters AND musicians? That’s the kind of thing that not only gets you an audience for your music, but also cool merchandise deals. Maybe even a cartoon! Or a movie! Man, it would be so surreal if one day he could actually own an action figure of himself and his friends… No doubt his little brother Vincent, as well as both of his parents, would be so proud.

“Okay, fine, but just a quick peek, and then we run back here,” the spiky-haired blond relented after finally coming to a firm decision.

The girl of their group chuckled and gave Sam a playful nudge on the arm. “Sam, you’re literally the last person of the three of us that I’d expect to be so hesitant about this kind of fun.”

“Hey, man, I  _just_ got out of being grounded for like an entire week. I don’t want to go back to that, Abbie. I  _can’t_ go back to that,” he laughed, nudging her back.

When the two looked over to the bedroom door upon hearing it creak open, they spotted Sebastian already heading out.

“Wait for us!” Abigail called out, rushing after him as quickly as she could with the large sword strapped to her back.

* * *

Sense of time seemed to escape the trio as they spent the last...what felt like hours, but was probably a lot shorter than that, following Sebastian through the wilderness as he lead the way with a small flashlight he kept in a pocket. Even with the light, it was difficult to navigate the landscape with all of the natural clutter that barely gave them enough space to walk let alone see in. Abigail was going to have a conniption if she nearly stumbled over one more massive root in all this mess.

“Maybe we should just turn around. I guess you were right—there probably really is nothing out here,” the young lady sighed, her upper back killing her from her heavy load that she now almost wished she’d just left at home. “Besides, I’m getting  _really_ bored,” she mumbled, half pondering what the night may have turned out to be like if they’d followed their original plan and just played video games. At least then, she’d have some progress into her new game to show for her efforts.

“It was your idea in the first place,” Sebastian finally responded, continuing to trudge forward if only out of determination to finish what he started. He, too, didn’t want to just go back home empty-handed.

Sam picked up his pace in order to catch up with Sebastian, now walking alongside him. With the hand that held his only half-empty can of cola, the only thing he’d brought with him for this expedition, he pointed a finger further into the darkness. “Did you guys see that?” he asked, wondering if he was just starting to nod off and imagine things that weren’t really there.

“I don’t see anything,” Abigail replied, flanking Sebastian’s other side and narrowing her eyes as she focused on the nothingness Sam gestured towards.

“I saw a light or something,” Sam asserted, with just a small amount of doubt given his current drowsy state.

In an effort to resolve the dispute, Sebastian aimed his flashlight in that direction. All of their eyes widened in unison as a figure, that looked to be a young man who was somewhere around their age, was revealed in the darkness. He held his arms up to shield his face from the light, and then tried to escape from their sight once more. Whoever, or whatever he was, he ran inhumanly fast, up until he lost balance and came tumbling into a bundle of weeds sprouting up from the ground.

The trio of friends surrounded the fallen man, Sebastian standing his ground, Abigail unsheathing her sword, and Sam looking down at the odd man curiously. They all took a step back as the stranger suddenly rolled onto his back, his front now covered in blotches of dirt and grass stains, and proceeded to guard his face with his forearms once again. “Don’t take me back to the laboratory! I won’t go! I’d...I’d rather die!” he cried out in an unexpectedly electronic sounding voice. He writhed on the ground helplessly, making sounds that reminded one of crying, but his face was completely dry. Whoever this...thing was, it was a lot more terrified of them than they were of it.

Sebastian turned to face Abigail, and silently gestured for her to put away her weapon in the hopes that it would clear up some of the tension in this situation. She hesitated and gave him a look of uncertainty, but reluctantly did so. Afterwards, he and Sam leaned over and helped the “young man” to his feet.

“What are you talking about, guy? What lab?” Sam asked skeptically, blinking in confusion both due to what he’d said, as well as how...odd the guy looked, now that he was able to get a better look at him. It. Whichever.

The robot took a long while to gather his senses, and for his internal systems to calculate how to maintain his balance now that he was upright again. The pose he was making in the meanwhile was reminiscent of how a human looked when nursing a massive headache. “You’re with The Joja Corporation, are you not?” he asked, glancing up at the three humans stood before him.

The friends gave one another a puzzled expression before turning their attention back to the damaged robot. “I mean, I’ve done some part-time work at the new JojaMart for a few extra bucks, but no not really,” Sam answered.

“We’re DEFINITELY no friends of them, if that’s what you’re asking,” Abigail threw in, seemingly angered by just the thought of the mega-corporation, as it threatened the livelihood of her family with their rival general store.

Calmed by these answers, but still uncertain of the intentions of these strangers, the robot examined their faces from where he stood thoughtfully as if trying to read their expressions in order to gauge their motivations. It was oddly endearing how he animatedly tapped underneath his puppet-like mouth where a bottom lip ought to be while his CPU processed the data. “I…believe you,” he decided with a slight nod.

Suddenly, something caught the robot’s eye. He pointed at the can in Sam’s hand. “Is that Joja Cola?” he asked.

“Er… Yeah?” Sam replied with an arched eyebrow.

The robot’s tone was now pleading as he begged, “Can I please have it? I need it very badly.” He even bent down on one knee and clasped his hands together just to show his desperation, since his mechanical voice was rather lacking in emotion.

Abigail covered her mouth and giggled, while Sebastian’s brows knitted together as he muttered aloud, “What does a robot need with soda…?”

“It’s half-empty, but sure I guess. It’s getting warm, anyway,” Sam said as he handed over the can.

To all of their surprise, the robot hastily drank down the contents of the can, and proceeded to crush the empty container in his jaw before swallowing that as well. It was followed by the loud whirring of gears and presumably blades somewhere within the robot’s body. The creature seemed to smile. “Thank you. I feel a lot better now,” he informed them happily, and sounding a lot more at ease. “Although my systems are still damaged, unfortunately.”

“So who...or WHAT are you, anyway?” Abigail spoke up, no longer as fearful herself. If anything, she was now more intrigued than she was afraid.

He looked to the young woman, the apparent smile still present on his metal face. “I am project name J-03-Y, but most of the Joja employees simply referred to me as Joey.”

“Joey?” she repeated, finding the unexpected name rather quaint.

“Yes.”

“What exactly brought you to Stardew Valley specifically, Joey?” Sebastian asked with an upturned palm, his voice containing a hint of suspicion in it.

Joey shrugged his shoulders, and his expression shifted to one of helplessness. “It was the quietest place I could find. I did not think that the Joja Corporation would ever think to look for me here.” He frowned. “But if it is like your friend said, and they have recently opened a store here, I fear that I was sorely mistaken.”

Abigail’s eyes widened. “Wait! Are you saying that Joja set up shop in Pelican Town because they were looking for you?!”

“It is possible,” he answered regretfully. “Although it is also possible that it was pure coincidence. After all, Joja has been expanding their business at an alarming rate for the past several years. I don’t imagine that they will cease until they have a presence in every town on Earth. However, I do apologize if my presence has expedited their arrival in your homeland.”

Rage began to settle in as this information was revealed to Abigail. All of her dad’s suffering.. All of the recent arguing in her family that was sparked by this drama with the arrival of JojaMart… Was potentially because of  _this beaten up hunk of metal_  that’s been lurking around in some ugly old woods for who knows how long now!?

At some point, though she didn’t notice when, she had grabbed Joey by his tattered sweater collar, and had her face only inches away from his own. “So it’s all YOUR fault!?” she cried out, shaking with anger.

“A-Ah!” the robot whimpered, flinching and cowering with fear. He expected that she’d strike him at any moment now. Perhaps he was accustomed to that sort of thing.

“Woah, Abbie, chill out! We don’t know that for sure!” Sam reminded her, tugging at the arm she had up in the air, ready to dish out a punch before her friend had stopped her. “He said that MIGHT be why they’re here!”

What Sam said snapped Abigail back to her senses, and it was only then that she realized that she was this close to pummeling an innocent person. He may have been just a robot, sure, but it...wouldn’t have felt right if she went through with it. Not with the way that he was looking at her. She let go of Joey, and backed away, guilt written all over her face. “I’m so sorry, I just… This is just a lot for me to take in.” Abigail folded her arms across her chest, and turned her back to the others in shame.

“It’s okay, Abigail. I don’t think any of us expected the night to turn out like this,” Sebastian admitted, approaching her slowly and placing a hand on her shoulder. “Maybe we all need to head back to our places and sleep on this. I don’t think any of us are going to get very far in figuring out what to do about this whole situation, being as stressed out and tired as we all are.”

After dispelling some of the unease, the rather gloomy young man then turned to the robot. “As for you, if you want, you can follow me home. You said you needed repairs, right? Well you’ve kind of lucked out, because machines are right up my half-sister Maru’s alley. I don’t normally like asking her for favors, but I think she’d practically volunteer on her own to repair you. I know you probably still don’t trust us, but I don’t think you have many other options.”

Joey adjusted the stretched-out collar on his sweater while considering Sebastian’s offer. It was true: he was indeed still very wary of these three, but… “An-And then what happens to me?” he stammered.

Sebastian shrugged. “We’ll bring you to the mayor tomorrow, and see what he thinks about the whole situation.”

His answer wasn’t very comforting, but at least it sounded honest. That was at least something, Joey thought. He just hoped that the mayor of this town was a kind person. “O-Okay.”

And so it was settled. After Sebastian guided the group out of the wilderness, they all said their goodbyes and went to their respective homes—with Joey following Sebastian to his.

“I really hope I don’t wind up regretting this,” Sebastian sighed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to start the story off with just one chapter for now, but I was inspired to go ahead and write up a second while I was in the mood for it today. I have plans for future chapters already. It's just a matter of finding the time to sit down and write some more. I hope I didn't portray any characters too OOC. Anyway, I hope you guys like it!

Despite Sebastian’s insistence that the matter could wait until after everyone had gotten some sleep, Maru had convinced him and her father Demetrius to help her get to work right away on repairing Sebastian’s new robot friend. Sebastian almost envied his mother, who had been the only one in the house fast asleep by the time he got home, where as his step-father and half-sister were wide awake working on another project. He much rather would have gotten some rest, rather than staying up until the crack of dawn, when he knew good and well that he had a website to finish designing by the end of the new day. If nothing else, he at least hoped that Joey was thankful for all he was doing for him.

Sebastian had to admit, though, this was probably the first time he actually took the time to be with family. It was surprisingly kind of enjoyable. Maru and Demetrius were eager to discuss the inner workings of the robot as they delved into his mechanisms, and explain them to Sebastian. To their surprise, he may have even taught them a thing or two. After all, some of the repair process reminded him a little bit of the free time he spent working on his motorcycle out in the garage.

It was weird. It was almost as if the three were actually...bonding. It’s not that Demetrius and Maru hadn’t _tried_ to include Sebastian in projects. They did attempt to gain his interest. A dozen times over the years. However, he always seemed persistent to be by himself and, at best, occasionally hang out with the two friends he’d made in town. Sebastian started to wonder to himself if maybe, just maybe, he missed out on something by turning them down all this time…

“Well I think that should do it,” Demetrius declared, flipping a switch underneath a plate on the robot’s upper back before putting the screws back in with expert speed.

“I just wish we had more time to study this “J-03-Y” before waking him back up,” Maru lamented while placing her tools back into their box. “I feel like there’s so much I can learn from his design! I don’t even know what half of the parts that he’s made from are made of, or what they’re even for! I’ve never seen anything like this!”

While in the middle of cleaning the oil from his hands with an old rag, Sebastian glanced up and grinned at his half-sister. “I’m sure you’ll have plenty of time to study him in the future, if he’ll let you. I don’t think he plans on going anywhere anytime soon.”

“I certainly hope not,” she replied, still seeming a tad disheartened. She almost fell backwards from where she was seated on the floor when the robot finally finished rebooting, and suddenly sprang back to life. “Gah!”

“I haven’t felt this well since the day I was manufactured!” Joey announced, now sitting upright on the ground and his white eyes shining brightly with a renewed fervor. He paused upon reconsidering his words. “After the first few bug fixes, of course… And defective hardware replacements.”

Demetrius laughed. “That good, huh?” He clapped the robot on the back, and slightly regretted it moments after when he was reminded by the sharp sting that oh yeah, its “skin” was solid titanium. Though a pained expression crossed his face, he tried his best to keep his discomfort otherwise hidden. “Well I’m glad that we could help. I hope you don’t mind, but we took a few notes about your inner workings. Like I mentioned before we got started, I’m a scientist, so I’m very used to documenting my findings when I come across something, or in this rare case some _one_ unusual that I’d like to learn more about!”

“At the very least, these notes will definitely be helpful for us to refer back to, should you ever need us to fix you up again!” Maru chimed in. “Not that we hope you get broken again, obviously. How _did_ you get so badly beaten up in the first place, anyway?”

“Well,” Joey began, crossing his legs as a subconscious way of mimicking the way she was currently sitting. “Besides the fact that I’ve been on the run for a long time now, I’ve encountered a lot of what I guess you folks here refer to as monsters during my time hiding out on that old farm plot. They’re not very friendly...”

“Heh. So Abigail was right all along. There really _were_ monsters in that forest,” Sebastian mused, feeling a little embarrassed that he doubted her just a bit on that one. To be fair, last time, Abigail told him there were monsters in the caves as well, but when he went down there to check it out himself one night, he just had an unfortunate run-in with a rock crab. He supposed it counted as a monster, but she had promised something a lot more fantastical like ghosts and shadowy figures that shambled in the darkness like zombies. Moody crustaceans pretending to be unsuspecting stones didn’t exactly scream “fantastical” and “scary” to him.

Leaning closer to the robot inquisitively, Maru questioned him further. “So you can take on monsters, then?”

Joey brought a hand up to the back of his neck, scratching underneath his artificial blue hair timidly. “Yes? Er…No… Maybe…?” He really couldn’t figure out what the truthful answer was there. “Honestly, I spent most of the time just running away from them, and hiding out until the sun came back up. Yesterday, I got stuck in a bush trying to get away from a small pack of slimes, and couldn’t get myself free until I grabbed on to that strange old man’s wrist to get a bit of leverage.” The robot averted his gaze from the three gathered around him. “Please don’t laugh at me...”

Maru tried not to, but it was pretty obvious that she was very close to bursting into laughter if her puffed up cheeks were anything to go by. It was hilarious to imagine that such a robustly-built machine couldn’t handle a few slimes. She almost wanted to ask if they were _green_ slimes, the weakest variety of them all, but was kind enough to spare him further embarrassment if the answer was yes. “We all have our weaknesses,” she said finally after a deep breath to calm herself.

“Maybe one of these days we could all pitch in and work on an upgrade for you,” Demetrius offered. He, too, looked for a moment as if he were about to laugh, much to Joey’s displeasure.

“I will definitely consider that,” Joey sighed, feeling slightly down on himself.

Sebastian coughed into his fist, drawing everyone’s attention to himself. “I’m glad you three are getting along so well, but I’ve got to admit that I’m honestly getting ridiculously tired. Joey, I think we should go ahead and introduce you to the mayor, who can take things from here for now. If only so he knows you’re here, and also not a monster on the loose like the whole town was freaking out about yesterday afternoon.

Joey nodded, and stood to his full height. He was clearly still nervous about the prospect of meeting the mayor, and was likely hoping he could stall the encounter a little while longer by chatting with his new friends.

“He’s not a bad guy, Joey,” Sebastian assured the robot with a sigh, holding his hands up with his palms upturned in mild irritation. “A little stern and old-fashioned, but so long as you stay out of trouble while you’re here in Pelican Town, I doubt he’ll mind you one bit.”

“Sebastian’s right,” Maru agreed, standing up herself and dusting her overalls off. “You guys go on ahead, and we’ll hang out together another time.” She leaned her head back and yawned. It was only just now when she stood up that her tiredness hit her like a speeding truck. Looking over at the clock only made her feel even more worn-out.

Demetrius found himself yawning just as well after witnessing his daughter do so. “Agh, don’t do that, Maru! Now I’m sleepy, too!” he jokingly complained, taking the time to stretch out his limbs and kick the numbness out of his legs on the solid ground.

“Thanks again, everyone, for helping me,” Joey said to the three with a joyful expression. “I promise I’ll find a way to repay you in time.”

“We know you will. Now get moving,” Sebastian called out. He gestured for Joey to follow, and they headed out the door quietly so as to avoid making too much noise since his mother was probably still asleep.

Speaking of, just as Sebastian and Joey left, Robin emerged from the kitchen with a cup of freshly-brewed coffee in one hand, while her other hand gripped the collar of her silk night robe. It was hard not to hear her shuffling down the hallway with the way she dragged her slippers against the wood flooring in the mornings.

“What was all that noise? Was somebody here?” the redhead mumbled drowsily, her eyes barely open as she looked between her husband and her daughter.

There was a moment of silence between the father and his daughter as they thought of how to respond to the questions. Maru simply couldn’t help herself, as she jumped up and down and proclaimed excitedly, “Sebastian has a new friend, and he’s a robot-man! Not just a simple machine, but a real, honest-to-gosh robot who can talk and think and...and...he has feelings! He’s _so_ cool, Mom!!! His name is J-03-Y, but he wants to be called Joey! And he’s going to be my friend, too! I always wanted to have a robot friend since I was a little kid! It’s like a dream come true!”

Robin was now fully awake after her mind, for the most part, processed everything that her daughter had tried to tell her in that mini-ramble. “Is this true, Demetrius, honey?” she asked, wondering if they were playing another light-hearted practical joke on her. It wasn’t the _first_ of spring today, was it? No, she was pretty sure that they were at least halfway to summer…

“I know it sounds like we’re messing with you, but it’s absolutely true. I wish I knew all the answers as to how a robot wound up in our little town, but… Well, it happened!” Demetrius shrugged his shoulders, not knowing what else to say. Heck, even he was still half-wondering if he was just in the middle of a dream he was about to wake up from any moment now. Given how tired he was right now, though, he sincerely doubted it. He’d never felt sleepy _inside of a dream._

His beloved wife took a long, deep drink from her coffee mug, and then she decided, “I’m going to go get dressed and see what this is all about.”

“Sebastian and the robot-er… Joey are going to see Mayor Lewis,” the scientist offered helpfully. He let out another yawn. “And I think _I’m_ going to go pay a visit to the Sandman. Maru and I were up all night repairing Joey. He wasn’t in great shape when Sebastian brought him over last night.” Demetrius paused to place a kiss on his wife’s cheek as he made his way to their bedroom to pass out for a few hours. Or days.

Maru rushed over to give her mother a quick hug goodbye, and dashed off to her own room. Robin could only hope that this incident wasn’t going to ruin Maru’s sleeping schedule. After all, she knew that Maru had work tomorrow at Dr. Harvey’s office. That wasn’t the line of work you wanted to be caught sleeping on the job in the middle of your shift. Especially if Maru wanted a good recommendation for her resume from the doctor. 

Oh well, Robin thought.  She had wanted to take a little more time to enjoy her morning, but this wouldn't by any means be the first time she had to rush herself.

* * *

 

Joey felt a bit like he was being paraded through the town like a sideshow, as he could tell that the townsfolk were staring at him from a safe distance and whispering to one another with a general tone of confusion and worry. He knew that wasn’t at all Sebastian’s intention, but...it still felt uncomfortable.

“Don’t worry about it,” Sebastian said, seeming to read the robot’s mind so to speak. “I’m still adjusting to you myself, to be honest, and I’m sure that eventually the people here will warm up to you, too. It’s natural for people to be afraid of things they don’t understand. People just need time.”

The words were very encouraging for a total of ten seconds, at which point, old man George (who decided after a lot of urging from his wife that maybe just this one time, he’d enjoy a little sunlight for a change) rolled out of his front doorway in his wheelchair, took a long look at the spectacle strolling through the middle of town, turned around, and went back inside.

Since the windows of the tiny home were open to let some fresh air inside, it was easy to hear him yelling indoors, “EVELYN! There’s a blue tin-man walkin’ around outside!”

“George, did you forget to take your medicine after you had your breakfast?” followed the elderly woman in question’s voice.

“No! There’s a metal man stompin’ around in the town square! Go see for yourself! It’s just like one I saw on TV the other night!” he insisted stubbornly.

Evelyn’s voice was woeful as she answered, “Oh, George, I _told_ you that you watch too much television...”

“I don’t think he thinks you can hear him,” mumbled Sebastian. So much for his pep talk…

Joey frowned. “I can tell...”

“Like I said, people just need time, Joey.”

The two young men were both relieved as they finally came across the mayor, who was out in his front yard working diligently on his blossoming garden.

“Mayor Lewis, sir, do you remember that monster everyone was talking about yesterday? Well, my friends and I found the alleged monster, and though he might be a little unusual, he’s not one at all. He’s a person just like anyone else, and he came to our town looking for a place to stay. I thought you might be able to help, since you’re the one everyone goes to first when they’re looking to move in,” Sebastian explained quickly, hoping he made a good case for the robot. In the back of his mind, Sebastian dreaded that he volunteered himself to be the one to handle this matter.

Of his circle of friends, he enjoyed talking _the least._ And yet here he was, speaking more words than he’s probably spoken over the course of the entire month in total thus far. All for a stranger’s sake. But he knew it had to be him to do it, and that it was the right thing to do. Mayor Lewis wasn’t exactly on great terms with Sam, and Abigail could be kind of a handful herself at times. Sebastian, however, got into very little trouble. The only time he ever did was when it was Sam’s doing, and everyone in town knew it—especially the mayor.

At first, most of what Sebastian had explained went through one ear and right out the other, since Lewis always had a lot on his mind, being the mayor and all. When he pulled himself away from his garden bed, he dropped the tiny shovel in his hand out of surprise when he saw “that quiet young man” standing next to some odd puppet-like kind of creature.

“Gwah!” Lewis cried out. “A monster!”

Sebastian covered his own face with his palm. “Didn’t you hear a word I just said…?”

The distant sound of plastic wheels rolling across the well-worn sidewalk got louder and louder until the boys were certain that something was coming up behind them. The noise came to a halt before they even turned around, and standing next to them was none other than Sam. “Hey, it’s the robot guy from last night!” he stated with a grin and a wave. A battered skateboard was tucked securely under the young man’s arm.

“How many times have I told you not to ride that thing on the sidewalk!?” The mayor was back on his feet, and shaking his fist at the young lad, seeming for a moment to entirely forget his fear over the “monster”. “You’re going to hurt somebody one of these days, and hoooboy, you’ll be in BIG trouble then, young man!”

“I wouldn’t have brought my skateboard out today if I knew _you_ were outside!” Sam retorted, as if that made any difference. “I just saw Seb and Joey walk by when I was looking out my bedroom window, and I was gonna show ‘em some new tricks I learned how to do! I wasn’t going to tear up anything! I swear!”

“I don’t care _how_ careful you are! When I said no skateboarding on the sidewalks, I meant _no_ skateboarding on the sidewalks, and that’s final- Wait...” The mayor unclenched his fist, and looked back at the blue-robot-monster-thing, then back to Sam. “What did you call this again?” he asked, pointing at the robot. “Joey?”

Sam beamed, relieved that the old man cooled off for now about the whole skateboarding thing. After all, he didn’t want the matter to get brought up to his mom. Again. “Yeah, he’s our new friend! He just moved in! Er… Well, he’s _trying_ to move in, but he just doesn’t have a place to stay yet. I asked my mom about it last night, but she said there’s no room at our place. Kinda sucks. A roommate might have been fun.”

Sebastian gritted his teeth when it appeared that the mayor had actually listened to _him_ explain things. “ _That’s what I’ve been trying to say this whole time!_ ” he growled under his breath.

The mayor looked embarrassed. “Oh, uhm. Sorry about that. I was in the middle of considering whether I should mix quality fertilizer or water-retaining fertilizer into my flower bed,” he admitted. “I mean, I was thinking about where this month’s tax money should go for public projects.”

Folding his arms across his chest, Sebastian just quietly glared with disappointment at the mayor. The bags under the young man’s eyes were really beginning to show the more that the morning sun came out. By Yoba, he was exhausted, and having to deal with this mess all while tired was just making it all that more agitating.

Lewis reached under his cap and scratched the thinning hair on his head. “Sorry for mistaking you for a monster, Mr. Joey. We’re a small town that doesn’t get a whole lot of excitement or surprises, so you’ll have to forgive me for jumping to conclusions.”

The robot smiled, and shook the mayor’s hand the moment the old man offered it. “It’s okay. I guess I was afraid of you all myself at first. That’s why I didn’t dare leave that old farmland up until now,” he admitted, seeing where the man was coming from now that he thought about it.

Removing the hat from his head entirely, Lewis rubbed his chin with the cap’s brim thoughtfully while enjoying the nice breeze through his hair. “You don’t say? You know, I’ve always been meaning to find someone willing to clean that old place up. If you’d be willing to do just that, and perhaps even turn the land into something useful that’ll contribute to the town in some way, I’ll give you the place for free. I should have the deed somewhere in my house.”

“You would really do that!?” Joey gasped excitedly. He hesitated once he noted the catch. “Exactly what might you consider to be “something useful that will contribute to the town”?”

Replacing the cap on his head, the mayor put his fists on his hips and shrugged his shoulders. “Dunno. I was thinking maybe a park, but we’ve already got one of those…” He snapped his fingers once he had an idea. “I mean, it used to be a farm, right? Surely the soil’s still good enough for growing something! It can’t be that hard to grow a few things that’ll help Pierre stock his shelves and keep his prices low enough to compete with the new JojaMart. Heck, if I can grow something, anybody can do it! Even a robot!”

“Hm. Only problem is, last I checked, the little farmhouse on that land has more holes in it than a block of Marnie’s famous goat cheese. Not much shelter to be had from something like that,” Lewis considered as the issue crossed his mind, stroking his mustache as he pondered a potential solution.

“If Joey and the boys give me a hand, I think I could get it fixed right up before nightfall,” Robin chimed in, making her presence known. It was hard to say how long she was standing there, much less listening in to the conversation.

“But how would I repay you? I don’t have any money,” Joey explained, incredibly thankful for everyone’s kindness, but also fully aware that something was understandably expected in return as compensation. Being a product of the Joja Corporation, he knew all too well that it was simply the way of the world. People didn’t just do things simply because it was the nice thing to do. Folks had to make a living, after all.

Robin smiled. “Well, if you’re going to start a farm, I’m sure you’ll need more than just a tiny little farmhouse later down the road. Just promise me that you’ll give me some business in the future once you become a hotshot farmer, and I say we’re even.”

“Oh, I will! Thank you so much, misses….erm..”

“It’s Robin,” she replied, her smile widening. “Just Robin. I’m Sebastian and Maru’s mother. Maru’s already told me all about you.”

“I hate to break it to you, mom, but I need some sleep. Badly,” Sebastian spoke up, giving his mother a very weary look.

Robin’s eyes got wider at her son’s reminder. “Oh that’s right! Demetrius said you’ve been up all night fixing up your friend here! Yeah, you go on home and get some rest. We might be out there working on the farmhouse a liiiiittle bit longer, in that case, but I think Sam, Joey, and I can still get it done in one day.”

“Aw man, Seb, you _had_ to go and stick me with the repair job?” Sam protested, groaning. “I was gonna practice my guitar some today! Mrs. Robin, can I bail out, too? I’m just not feeling up for hard work today. No offense, Joey. You’re a cool guy and all, but-”

“Sam, you’re _never_ up for hard work,” Robin cut in, shaking her head at the young man. “Come on, it’s your turn to pitch in and help out your new friend. How would you feel if you needed a place to stay, and your friends bailed out on you in your time of need?”

The blond sighed in defeat. “I’d be really ticked off at my friends,” he relented honestly, stuffing his hands into his pockets and kicking the dust off of the sidewalk’s rough surface in a pout.

“Well there you go,” Robin replied. “Now the sooner we get started, the sooner we’ll get finished. And maybe if you work hard, we’ll get finished super early and you’ll have plenty of time to get a little bit of guitar practice in.” She knew in the back of her head that it was unlikely, but maybe a bit of hope would motivate the otherwise lazy kid.

“Sam? Working hard? I might have to come see this myself,” Lewis suggested rather smugly.

Robin turned to him and said, “You know, you can help if you want, too, mayor.”

The hairs of the old man’s mustache practically curled in shock at that. “M-Me? Oh, no. I would _love_ to, but… I’m very, very busy today with planning the next festival!”

The woman gave him a doubtful expression. “Oh really, now?”

“Yes, yes! Lots to do! Busy busy! And besides, I really ought to go find that deed for the property!” Before she could quiz him any further, the mayor hurried into his house, and slammed the door behind him. They could all hear the click of the lock on his front door.

“I’m beginning to feel like a bit of a burden,” Joey thought out loud.

Robin ruffled the robot’s already messy hair. “Oh, don’t think like that. We all need a hand sometimes in life. Once you get started, I’m sure that one of these days, you’ll be the one helping us out when we need it. You just need an opportunity. C’mon, boys, let’s swing back by my place to pick up my tools and some supplies.”

“Sure, let me just put my skateboard back inside the house,” Sam said. “Oh, mind if we drop by Gus’ real quick on the way so I can grab a soda? I’m super thirsty.”

“I would like one as well,” Joey agreed.

Robin smirked. “Only if you’re buying for everyone, Sam! Fixing up an old shack is going to be thirsty work for me, too!”

Sam rolled his eyes. “Ugh, you both are total mooches! Alright, but just this once!”

“Actually, I was hoping we could get another one for the road when we’re finished!” Robin replied, pushing her luck.

The youth ran a hand through his heavily gelled hair. “What!? _Dude_! Fine, fine, but you both _so_ owe me!”

Robin and Joey shared a laugh together at Sam’s expense.

The people in this town were amazing, Joey thought to himself. Nothing at all like the scientists, supervisors, and salesmen he came across in his time spent as a prisoner in the Joja lab he was constructed in. Though he was still a little frightened by the uncertainty of the future, he knew deep down that he was going to like it here. He just hoped that, in time, the people there would grow to like him, too.


End file.
